Press-VPN

Press-VPN offers very little information regarding its features.

Tempted by the promises on its website, but suspicious of the service’s legitimacy, I tried to sign up — hoping I’d get more info. Unfortunately, I was never able to complete my payment.

I took the VPN for a short spin using its free trial option, but was disappointed at almost every turn. Frankly, it does not come close to the top-tier VPNs on the market. Not only that, but it might even put your online privacy at risk. Read on to find out why.

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Streaming — Doesn’t Unblock Any Platforms

I couldn’t fully test Press-VPN’s streaming capabilities as I had access to only 3 servers in Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands (and I had to sign up 3 times just to try them. More on that later).

Press-VPN makes no claims about its ability to unblock streaming platforms or help you access geo-blocked content. This is rare, as most VPNs boast about their strong unblocking powers.

I contacted the VPN’s support team to ask if I could use the service for streaming. The answer was yes, but they couldn’t recommend any particular servers. I found this odd, as most VPNs will give you recommendations depending on the platforms you want to unblock.

With no recommendations to go on, I tried accessing Netflix with a few different locations. No matter which server I used, I couldn’t even get to the Netflix home page. I received the HTTP error code 403 which means the server understands my request but denies it. Meaning, you are blocked from accessing Netflix with Press-VPN.

Netflix’s servers denied my request, so I couldn’t even see the front page

Then, I tried to access Disney+ and failed again. I wasn’t denied access, but the home page never loaded and remained completely black no matter which server I used. This is the error Disney+ returns when it detects a VPN or it can’t see that you’re in a licensed location.

Next, I tried Amazon Prime Video with the Sydney server but that didn’t work either. This time, I could load the website but the VPN wasn’t able to spoof my location. Amazon Prime Video wasn’t tricked into thinking I was in Australia.

I couldn’t access any Amazon Prime Video libraries except my local one

Even though the support team says you can use the service for streaming, my tests prove that Press-VPN is not able to unblock popular streaming platforms.

If you want a VPN that reliably unblocks streaming platforms, I suggest you pick a service from this list to access Hulu and other streaming services with ease.

Speeds — Fast Speeds on Most Servers

Press-VPN gave me surprisingly good speeds on the few servers I had access to.

Before testing, I measured my base speeds. I had 49 Mbps download, 1.88 Mbps upload, and a ping of 11 ms. Next, I set the VPN protocol to OpenVPN’s UDP to get better performance (the TCP protocol puts emphasis on security, thus sacrificing speed).

Then, I tested the Netherlands server and was pleasantly surprised — I only got a 13% decrease in download speed, which is great. You only need 25 Mbps to stream in the highest quality. Which means (if the VPN was capable of unblocking any streaming platforms) I could have watched my favorite titles in UHD.

Next, I tested the Canadian server and got surprisingly fast speeds again — only an 18% decrease. The server is thousands of miles away from me, so I was surprised with the result. Usually, small VPNs drop your speed considerably on long-distance locations.

Lastly, I tested the Australian location and experienced a drop in speed of 57%. While this is not ideal, I was expecting it to drop by more than 80%. Streaming in HD would still be possible with these speeds. However, if your baseline speed was lower than mine, you may struggle with this amount of speed decrease.

The Netherlands server provided me with the best speeds

While Press-VPN promises high speeds on all servers, I can’t really confirm this claim as I had access to only 3 locations. While the results were inconsistent, I was pleased with the overall outcome.

If you want even faster speeds and more reliable server access though, pick one of these superfast VPNs, like ExpressVPN. That way, you won’t have to limit yourself to only one location or compromise between speed and safety.

Server Network — Small and Limited

Press-VPN has 16 servers in 13 countries. While this is a relatively small number of servers, it’s a well-distributed network at least.

Most servers are in European countries — Germany, Latvia, Ukraine, Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Finland, Russia. The VPN also has servers in the US, Canada, Africa – South Africa, Asia – Hong Kong, and Australia. However, it doesn’t specify the number of servers in each country.

However, your access to these servers depends on which plan you choose. The cheaper plans only give you access to one location. Alternatively, you can pay more to access 5 locations of your choice. I also experienced issues with this payment process and ended up having to sign up 3 times just to test 3 different server locations.

Most good VPNs I’ve tested — like CyberGhost — give you access to thousands of servers at no additional cost. So I wasn’t impressed with Press-VPN’s network at all.

Security — Unclear Measures, but Keeps You Safe

Press-VPN does not provide any information about the security features it offers or its ability to protect you from data leaks or cyber attacks.

Encryption and Protocols

The VPN is based on OpenVPN, which is a secure tunneling protocol. This was a relief as OpenVPN is the industry standard, so I trust its security.

The client I used gave me the option to choose between UDP (faster) and TCP (more secure) connections. Alternatively, you can set the protocol to Adaptive and let the app choose the best protocol for you.

Additionally, the OpenVPN client uses AES 256-bit encryption as default — the highest level, and virtually uncrackable.

IP, DNS, and WebRTC Leaks

I tested Press-VPN for IP, DNS, and WebRTC leaks, and I was pleased to find there were none. The VPN successfully protected me against data leaks.

IP leaks occur when the VPN doesn’t correctly assign you a new IP address. When this happens, the websites and apps you use may see your real IP location and location. DNS leaks are similar, but it’s your browsing history that gets revealed. So it’s reassuring that none of this information was at risk while I was connected.

That means my real location, IP address, and online activity was never exposed

Kill Switch

The OpenVPN client comes with a kill switch feature, neatly called Seamless Tunnel. It blocks your whole internet connection when the VPN is paused or reconnecting. This is important as your internet traffic can revert to your ISP if you lose connection to the VPN, inadvertently exposing your data. The kill switch prevents this from happening.

While Press-VPN benefits from OpenVPN’s security features, it’s worrying that the VPN doesn’t mention any measures itself. If you need a safe and reliable VPN that will keep you protected, I recommend you choose one of these secure VPNs instead.

Privacy — Possible Logging and Russian HQ

Press-VPN claims that it does not collect, keep, or share information about you and the way you use the VPN. This claim was confirmed by the VPN’s support team.

However, the OpenVPN client keeps detailed logs of your VPN usage. These logs include your IP address, assigned IP address, DNS servers, time of connecting and disconnecting from the server, and more. You can’t turn the logging off, you can only clear or save the log file.

The OpenVPN client keeps a detailed log of your VPN usage

While Press-VPN claims that it never collects or stores any of this information, we can only take the VPN’s word for it. The service has never been independently audited.

This is especially concerning as it seems like Press-VPN is based in Russia. The service never gave me a definitive answer regarding its HQ location, but several of its links and some content on its website are in Russian.

Russia is outside the intelligence-sharing 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance, but it’s not exactly known for being privacy-friendly. If you can’t guarantee that Press-VPN doesn’t have access to the OpenVPN client logs, you also can’t guarantee that those logs won’t be handed over to the Russian government.

If you need a service that takes your privacy seriously, take a look at these VPNs with airtight privacy policies.

Torrenting — Allowed, but Not Recommended

Press-VPN allows P2P traffic, but I don’t recommend it.

There’s no mention of whether P2P file sharing is allowed on the website, so I reached out to the VPN’s support team. They confirmed that torrenting is allowed and there are no restrictions.

While my OpenVPN client seemed secure, the lack of clarity around the VPN’s HQ and logging policy meant I didn’t feel safe torrenting with the service.

There are many VPNs that support P2P file sharing and are proven to keep you protected while you do it. I suggest you pick a torrenting VPN from this list instead — some of them even have dedicated P2P servers.

Does Press-VPN Work in China? Probably Not

Press-VPN provides no information on whether it works in China.

I contacted the support team to ask, and they told me that they’ve never tested the service in China.

Considering that it couldn’t even access Netflix’s home page, I doubt Press-VPN can bypass the Great Firewall.

I’d suggest you pick a reliable VPN for China from this list rather than taking the risk with PressVPN.

Simultaneous Device Connections — Only 1

Press-VPN allows only 1 connection at a time.

I had to contact the customer support team yet again to find this out. There’s no information about simultaneous connections on the website. The team also clarified that you can install the VPN on multiple devices, but you can’t connect them simultaneously.